Provençal Fish Soup
A beautiful fish soup, built upon fresh fish stock (fumet), includes several fish, shellfish, and fresh vegetables. The key to the success of this dish, as with all such fish soups, is in the selection of the seafood. Decide at the market, picking up the freshest in season. Amounts and variety are optional, but figure each person will consume 7 - 8 ounces of the finished dish. Select a combination of shellfish, white fish, and salmon.
Ingredients
- Fumet (Fish Stock)
- White Fish Bones - 2 pounds
- Onion - 1, peeled and diced
- Leek - 1, white part only, diced
- Celery Rib - 1, diced
- Fennel bulb - 1 cup, chopped
- White Wine - 1 cup
- Coriander seeds - 6, crushed
- Black peppercorns - 5, crushed
- Fresh Thyme - 1 sprig
- Cold Water - 6 cups
- Fish Soup
- Fumet (fish stock; above) - 4 - 6 cups
- Saffron - pinch
- Fennel bulb - 1, trimmed and cut into 1/4-inch slices
- Leek - 1, white part only, diced
- Crook Neck or baby yellow squash - 8 to 12, split in half
- Lemon Juice - 2 teaspoons
- Four to six 7 - 8 ounce portions of seafood per person, such as...
- Crawfish - 3
- Smelt - 1
- Sea Scallops - 2, two-ounces
- Mussels - 3
- Clams - 3
- Fresh Salmon - one, 2-ounce piece
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper
- Olive Oil - 2 tablespoons
- Semolina - 1 tablespoon
- Chopped Herbs - 1-1/2 tablespoons, (suggested combination: tarragon, chives, chervil, and parsley)
- Asparagus spears - 20 to 30 3-inch, blanched
- Haricots verts (baby green beans) - 12 to 16, blanched
- Unsalted Butter - 1 to 2 tablespoons (optional)
- Purple Basil Sprigs - 4 - 6 (optional)
- Croutons
- French bread - 1 loaf day-old, cut in 1-1/2-inch cubes
- Olive Oil - 1/2 cup
- Rouille
- Egg - 1
- Dijon mustard - 1 tablespoon
- Lemon Juice - 2 tablespoons l
- Red Pepper - 1/2 roasted, seeded, deribbed, and peeled
- Fresh Garlic - 3 teaspoons, finely chopped
- Olive Oil - 3/4 cup
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
To make the fumet: Rinse the fish bones under cold running water. Chop the bones into small, manageable pieces. In a large saucepan, combine the vegetables, wine, and spices. Bring the mixture to a simmer over medium-low heat, cover, and cook 8 - 10 minutes. Add the fish bones and enough cold water to cover the bones. Bring the mixture to a boil, reduce heat to simmer, and cook for 20 minutes. Skim any impurities which rise to the surface during cooking. Remove from heat and strain through a fine-meshed sieve, then strain again through cheesecloth or a coffee filter to obtain clear stock.
To make the soup: In a large pot, heat the broth with the saffron. As the broth begins to steam, add the fennel and cook 4 to 5 minutes. Add the leeks and lemon juice and simmer 2 to 3 minutes. Add the squash and begin to add the fish and shellfish, beginning with the largest pieces; add the shellfish last. Cook 4 to 5 minutes, until the shells open and the fish is cooked.
In a small saute pan, heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil. Dip the smelt in the semolina and saute, turning to brown evenly. Add the herbs, asparagus, and green beans to the soup and heat for 1 minute. Stir in the butter for additional richness if desired.
To make the croutons: Heat the oven to 450 F. Brush the croutons with olive oil and spread on a baking sheet in a single layer. Bake until crisp, 5 - 7 minutes. Set aside on paper towels.
To make the rouille: Combine all ingredients except the olive oil in a food processor and puree. With the machine running, slowly add the olive oil until the mixture resembles mayonnaise. Adjust seasoning to taste with salt and pepper.
To serve: Ladle soup into large serving bowls. Arrange the vegetables on top. Position a crayfish (if used) on each, and place a smelt on top. Ladle the broth over and around. Place a crouton to one side of each dish and spoon rouille over the crouton. Garnish with purple basil.
